Information processing system, storage medium, and information processing method

ABSTRACT

An information processing system includes one or more vehicles; and a server configured to communicate with the one or more vehicles, wherein each of the one or more vehicles is configured to generate a first video of a traveling route by capturing an outside scene while traveling, and the server is configured to store a plurality of the first videos generated by the one or more vehicles, generate a second video of a specific route using two or more of the first videos, the specific route being different from the traveling route of each of the plurality of the first videos, and send the second video to a terminal device.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

The disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2018-234151 filed onDec. 14, 2018 including the specification, drawings and abstract isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to an information processing system, astorage medium, and an information processing method.

2. Description of Related Art

There is a technique that provides the information on a route from adeparture place to a destination. For example, Japanese PatentApplication Publication No. 2016-057284 (JP 2016-057284 A) discloses atechnique that extracts a plurality of captured images, eachcorresponding to the capturing point identical or near to each of aplurality of passing points on a user's movement route, from thedatabase and, before the user moves from the departure place to thedestination, sequentially displays the plurality of extracted capturedimages.

SUMMARY

In recent years, a user may wish to confirm a desired route by video.However, according to the technique described above, the video of theroute cannot be provided when there is no vehicle that has captured thevideo of the route while actually traveling the route. Therefore, it isdesirable to improve the convenience of the technique for providing theinformation on a desired route.

The present disclosure improves the convenience of the technique forproviding the information on a desired route.

An information processing system according to a first aspect of thepresent disclosure includes one or more vehicles; and a serverconfigured to communicate with the one or more vehicles, wherein each ofthe one or more vehicles is configured to generate a first video of atraveling route by capturing an outside scene while traveling, and theserver is configured to store a plurality of the first videos generatedby the one or more vehicles, generate a second video of a specific routeusing two or more of the first videos, the specific route beingdifferent from the traveling route of each of the plurality of the firstvideos, and send the second video to a terminal device.

A non-transitory storage medium according to a second aspect of thepresent disclosure stores a program that causes an informationprocessing device configured to communicate with one or more vehicles toexecute storing a plurality of first videos of traveling routes, each ofthe first videos being generated by capturing an outside scene whileeach of the one or more vehicles is traveling, generating a second videoof a specific route using two or more of the first videos, the specificroute being different from the traveling route of each of the pluralityof the first videos, and sending the second video to a terminal device.

An information processing method according to a third aspect of thepresent disclosure is performed by an information processing systemincluding the one or more vehicles and a server configured tocommunicate with the one or more vehicles. The information processingmethod includes: generating, by each of the one or more vehicles, afirst video of a traveling route by capturing an outside scene whiletraveling; storing, by the server, a plurality of the first videosgenerated by the one or more vehicles; generating, by the server, asecond video of a specific route using two or more of the first videos,the specific route being different from the traveling route of each ofthe plurality of the first videos, and sending, by the server, thesecond video to a terminal device.

According to the information processing system, the program, and theinformation processing method according to one embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the convenience of the technique for providing informationon a desired route is improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features, advantages, and technical and industrial significance ofexemplary embodiments of the disclosure will be described below withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals denotelike elements, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an informationprocessing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of nodes and road links on a roadmap;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of avehicle;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a server;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a first video stored in theserver;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of aterminal device;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the server; and

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the operation of the terminal device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

An embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detailbelow.

(First embodiment) An overview of an information processing system 1according to one embodiment of the present disclosure will be describedbelow with reference to FIG. 1. The information processing system 1includes vehicles 10, a server 20, and terminal devices 30. The vehicle10 is, but is not limited to, an automobile; that is, the vehicle 10 maybe any vehicle. Although only two vehicles 10 are shown in FIG. 1 forease of description, any number of vehicles 10 may be included in theinformation processing system 1. The server 20 includes one informationprocessing device or two or more information processing devices (forexample, server devices) capable of communicating with each other. Theterminal device 30 is, for example, a personal computer (PC), a serverdevice, or a smartphone, but may be any information processing device.Although only two terminal devices 30 are shown in FIG. 1 for ease ofdescription, any number of terminal devices 30 may be included in theinformation processing system 1. The vehicle 10, server 20, and terminaldevice 30 can communicate with each other via a network 40 such as amobile communication network and the Internet.

First, the outline of this embodiment will be described below, and thedetails will be described later. The vehicle 10, on which an in-vehiclecamera is mounted, generates a first video of the traveling route bycapturing the outside scene while traveling on the route. In the firstvideo, the roadway, facilities such as a store, street lights,sidewalks, persons such as pedestrians, and other vehicles may beincluded. In this embodiment, one or more vehicles 10 generates aplurality of first videos of different traveling routes. The server 20stores the plurality of first videos. When a request is received fromthe terminal device 30, the server 20 generates the second video of aspecific route, which is different from the traveling route of each ofthe plurality of first videos, using two or more first videos. Afterthat, the server 20 sends the generated second video to the requestingterminal device 30.

With reference to FIG. 2, the method of generating a second video willbe described in detail below. FIG. 2 shows an example in which six nodesA to F and the road links, which connect these nodes, are arranged in agrid pattern. For example, when the vehicle 10 sequentially passesthrough the nodes in the order of nodes A, B, and C while capturing theoutside scene, the first video of the traveling route passing throughnodes A, B, and C is generated. Similarly, when the vehicle 10 oranother vehicle 10 sequentially passes through the nodes in the order ofnodes B, E, and F while capturing the outside scene, the first video ofthe traveling route passing through nodes B, E, and F is generated. Now,consider a specific route that passes through the nodes in the order ofnodes A, B, E, and F. In such a case, the second video of the specificroute described above can be generated by trimming the part moving fromnode A to node B from the first first-video and then by combining(concatenating) the trimmed part with the second first video.

In this way, a plurality of first videos is used in this embodiment togenerate the second video of a specific route different from each of thetraveling routes of the plurality of first videos. For this reason, evenif there is no vehicle 10 that actually traveled on the specific route,the second video of the specific route can be provided to the user ofthe terminal device 30. This method, therefore, improves the convenienceof the technique for providing desired route information.

Next, the components of the information processing system 1 will bedescribed in detail below.

(Configuration of vehicle) As shown in FIG. 3, the vehicle 10 includes acommunication unit 11, a positioning unit 12, a capturing unit 13, astorage unit 14, and a control unit 15. Each of the communication unit11, positioning unit 12, capturing unit 13, storage unit 14, and controlunit 15 may be incorporated in the vehicle 10 or may be removablyprovided in the vehicle 10. The communication unit 11, positioning unit12, capturing unit 13, storage unit 14, and control unit 15 arecommunicably connected to each other, for example, via an in-vehiclenetwork such as the controller area network (CAN) or a dedicated line.

The communication unit 11 includes a communication module for connectionto the network 40. This communication module conforms to the mobilecommunication standards such as the 4th generation (4G) and the 5thgeneration (5G). In addition to these modules, the communication modulemay conform to any communication standard. For example, an in-vehiclecommunication device, such as the data communication module (DCM), mayfunction as the communication unit 11. In this embodiment, the vehicle10 is connected to the network 40 via the communication unit 11.

The positioning unit 12 includes a receiver corresponding to a satellitepositioning system. This receiver corresponds to the global positioningsystem (GPS). In addition to this positioning system, the receiver maycorrespond to any satellite positioning system. For example, the carnavigation device may function as the positioning unit 12. In thisembodiment, the vehicle 10 acquires the position information on thevehicle using the positioning unit 12.

The capturing unit 13 includes an in-vehicle camera that generates avideo obtained by capturing an object in the field of view. Thisin-vehicle camera may be a monocular camera or a stereo camera. Thecapturing unit 13 is provided in the vehicle 10 so as to be able tocapture the outside scene. For example, a drive recorder or anelectronic device having the camera function, such as a smartphone usedby an occupant, may function as the capturing unit 13. In thisembodiment, the vehicle 10 uses the capturing unit 13 to generate thefirst video of a traveling route by capturing the outside scene whiletraveling on the route.

The storage unit 14 includes one or more memories. In this embodiment,the “memory” is, but is not limited to, a semiconductor memory, amagnetic memory, or an optical memory. Each memory included in thestorage unit 14 may function as a main storage device, an auxiliarystorage device, or a cache memory. The storage unit 14 stores anyinformation used for the operation of the vehicle 10. For example, thestorage unit 14 may store system programs, application programs,embedded software, and road map information. The road map informationmay include the identification information and the position informationon the nodes and the road links. For example, based on a comparisonbetween the temporarily changing position information, acquired by thepositioning unit 12, and the road map information, the nodes and theroad links through which the vehicle 10 has passed can be detected. Theinformation stored in the storage unit 14 is updatable, for example,with the information acquired from the network 40 via the communicationunit 11.

The control unit 15 includes one or more processors. In this embodiment,the “processor” includes, but is not limited to, a general-purposeprocessor and a dedicated processor specialized for specific processing.For example, an electronic control unit (ECU) mounted on the vehicle 10may function as the control unit 15. The control unit 15 controls theoverall operation of the vehicle 10.

For example, the control unit 15 generates the first video of atraveling route by using the capturing unit 13 to capture the outsidescene while the vehicle 10 is traveling on the traveling route. Whilecapturing the first video, the control unit 15 compares the temporarilychanging position information, obtained by the positioning unit 12, andthe road map information stored in the storage unit 14. Based on thiscomparison, the control unit 15 detects the traveling route of thevehicle 10 and the passage of the vehicle 10 through nodes or roadlinks. The control unit 15 detects the playback position of the videodata corresponding to the time at which the vehicle 10 passed througheach node on the traveling route (hereinafter also referred to as“node-passage-time playback position”) and stores the detected playbackposition in the storage unit 14. The playback position refers to aposition (in minutes and seconds) on a bar, for example at the bottom ofthe screen, to show the amount of video that has been played back sofar.

In addition, the control unit 15 acquires the information indicating thecapturing situation that was present when the first video was captured.The “capturing situation” may include at least one of the time zone, theseason, the weather, the speed of the vehicle 10, the congestion degreeof the roadway, and the congestion degree of the sidewalk at the time ofcapturing. However, the capturing situation includes, but is not limitedto, the examples given above; that is the capturing situation mayinclude any situation at the time of capturing. Any method may be usedfor acquiring the information that indicates the capturing situation.For example, the time zone and the season at the time of capturing maybe acquired based on the system time. The weather at the time ofcapturing may be acquired from the first video through imagerecognition, or may be acquired from the network 40 via thecommunication unit 11. The speed of the vehicle 10 at the time ofcapturing may be acquired from the speed sensor mounted on the vehicle10. The degree of congestion of the roadway and the degree of congestionof the sidewalk at the time of capturing may be acquired from the firstvideo through image recognition.

In addition, the control unit 15 sends the generated first video to theserver 20 via the communication unit 11. The first video that is sentincludes not only the video data but also, as the metadata, theinformation indicating the capturing situation, traveling route, andnode-passage-time playback position (see FIG. 5). In this embodiment, atraveling route is represented by the information indicating the nodesin the order in which the vehicle 10 has passed through while capturingthe first video. Note that, however, a traveling route need not alwaysbe represented in this form but may be represented in any other form.For example, a traveling route may be represented by the positioninformation on the vehicle 10 in the form of time-series data or by theinformation indicating the road links in the order in which the vehicle10 has passed.

(Configuration of server) As shown in FIG. 4, the server 20 includes aserver communication unit 21, a server storage unit 22, and a servercontrol unit 23.

The server communication unit 21 includes a communication module forconnection to the network 40. This communication module conforms to thewired local area network (LAN) standard. In addition to this standard,the communication module may conform to any communication standard. Inthis embodiment, the server 20 is connected to the network 40 via theserver communication unit 21.

The server storage unit 22 includes one or more memories. Each memoryincluded in the server storage unit 22 may function, for example, as amain storage device, an auxiliary storage device, or a cache memory. Theserver storage unit 22 stores any information used for the operation ofthe server 20. For example, the server storage unit 22 may store systemprograms, application programs, databases, and map information. The mapinformation may include the information indicating the names, types, andpositions of the facilities present on the map and the informationindicating the position of the streetlights. The information stored inthe server storage unit 22 may be updatable, for example, with theinformation acquired from the network 40 via the server communicationunit 21.

The server control unit 23 includes one or more processors. The servercontrol unit 23 controls the overall operation of the server 20. Forexample, the server control unit 23 receives a plurality of firstvideos, generated by the one or more vehicles 10, via the servercommunication unit 21 and stores the received first videos in the serverstorage unit 22. As described above, a first video received from thevehicle 10 includes not only the video data but also the informationindicating the capturing situation, the traveling route, and thenode-passage-time playback position. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, thevideo data, capturing situation, traveling route, and node-passage-timeplayback position are stored in the server storage unit 22. FIG. 5 showstwo first videos stored in the server storage unit 22. Morespecifically, the first first-video includes video data M1 of thetraveling route passing through nodes in the order of A, B, and C, thecorresponding capturing situation, and the correspondingnode-passage-time playback positions. In video data M1, the node Apassage-time playback position is 00:00, the node B passage-timeplayback position is 01:30, and the node C passage-time playbackposition is 03:00. Similarly, the second first video includes video dataM2 of the traveling route passing through nodes in the order of B, E,and F, the corresponding capturing situation, and the correspondingnode-passage-time playback positions. In video data M2, node Bpassage-time playback position is 00:00, node E passage-time playbackposition is 00:40, and node F passage-time playback position is 01:20.

In addition, when a first request, which specifies a departure place anda destination, is received from the terminal device 30 via the servercommunication unit 21, the server control unit 23 determines a pluralityof different candidate routes from the departure place to thedestination. When the first request further specifies one or morewaypoints, the server control unit 23 may determine a plurality ofcandidate routes that pass through one or more of the waypoints. Anupper limit may be set for the number of candidate routes that aredetermined. When an upper limit is set, the server control unit 23 maypreferentially determine, from among many candidate routes from thedeparture place to the destination, candidate routes that satisfy thepredetermined criteria (for example, with priority given to a route witha short travel distance) up to the upper limit. Note that, in thisembodiment, it is assumed that a candidate route determined by theserver control unit 23 is different from the traveling route of each ofthe plurality of first videos stored in the server storage unit 22.

In addition, the server control unit 23 acquires the attributeinformation indicating the attribute of each candidate route. The“attribute of a route” may include at least one of the type offacilities (for example, convenience store, post office, etc.) andnumber of facilities along the route, the presence or absence ofstreetlights, and the type and number of crimes that occurred on theroute. However, the attribute of a route is not limited to the aboveexamples but may include any attribute related to the route. Any methodmay be used to acquire the attribute information on a candidate route.For example, the type and number of facilities and the presence orabsence of streetlights may be acquired, through image recognition, fromthe first video that is common to both at least a part of the travelingroute and the candidate route, may be acquired based on a comparisonbetween the candidate route and the map information stored in the serverstorage unit 22, or may be acquired from the network 40 via the servercommunication unit 21. The type and number of crimes may be acquiredbased on a comparison between the candidate route and the crimeinformation map. The crime information map, which is map data includingthe position at which a crime occurred and the type of the crime, can beacquired from an administrative agency, such as the police, via thenetwork 40.

In addition, the server control unit 23 sends the candidate routeinformation, which indicates a plurality of candidate routes, to theterminal device 30 via the server communication unit 21. The candidateroute information may include the attribute information on the candidateroutes. The candidate route information may also include the informationthat identifies a recommended route which is one of the plurality ofcandidate routes and whose attribute satisfies a predetermined criterion(for example, a candidate route with the smallest number of crimes). Aswill be described later, the candidate route information, which is sentto the terminal device 30, is output by the terminal device 30 forpresentation to the user of the terminal device 30.

In addition, when a second request, which specifies one candidate routeselected from a plurality of candidate routes, is received from theterminal device 30 via the server communication unit 21, the servercontrol unit 23 determines the selected one candidate route as aspecific route. As described above, the specific route (i.e., oneselected candidate route) is different from each of the traveling routesof the plurality of first videos stored in the server storage unit 22.This means that the server storage unit 22 does not store the firstvideo of a traveling route identical to the specific route. Therefore,the server control unit 23 generates the second video of the specificroute using two or more of the first videos. For example, the servercontrol unit 23 may generate the second video by combining at least apart of each of the two or more of the first videos.

The method of generating the second video of a specific route will bedescribed in detail below. For example, assume that the server storageunit 22 stores at least the following two first videos as shown in FIG.5: one is the first video (hereinafter also referred to as “first videoABC”) of the traveling route passing through the nodes in the order ofnodes A, B, and C, and the other is the first video (hereinafter alsoreferred to as “first video BEF”) of the traveling route passing throughthe nodes in the order of nodes B, E, and F. Also, assume that thespecific route is a route passing through the nodes in the order ofnodes A, B, E, and F. In such a case, the server control unit 23 trimsthe part from node A to node B of video data M1 of the first video ABC(in the example shown in FIG. 5, the part corresponding to the playbackposition from 00:00 to 01:30 of the video data M1). Then, the servercontrol unit 23 combines the part, trimmed from the video data M1 of thefirst video ABC, and the video data M2 of the first video BEF togenerate the second video of the specific route that sequentially passesthrough nodes A, B, E, and F.

When generating a second video, the server control unit 23 maypreferentially select, from among the plurality of first videos storedin the server storage unit 22, two or more of the first videos having asimilar capturing situation and, using the two or more of the firstvideos selected in this way, generate the second video. Such aconfiguration improves the visibility of the second video as describedbelow.

For example, assume that the capturing situation of the first video ABCindicates that the time zone is “day” and that the capturing situationof the first video BEF indicates that the time zone is “night”. In sucha case, when the second video of the specific route is generated usingthe first video ABC and the first video BEF as described above, the timezone changes from day to night at the time of passage through node Bduring the playback of the second video. When a second video isgenerated using two or more of the first videos that are different inthe capturing situation in this way, the capturing situation mayunnaturally change during the playback of the second video. In thiscase, the visibility of the second video generated is not necessarilyhigh. On the other hand, assume that another first video (hereinafteralso referred to as “first video AB”) passing through the nodes in theorder of nodes A and B is stored in the server storage unit 22 and thecapturing situation of the first video AB indicates that the time zoneis “night”. In such a case, when a second video is generated using thefirst video AB and the first video BEF both of which have the capturingsituation indicating that the time zone is “night”, the time zone doesnot change at the time of the passage through node B during the playbackof the second video. Generating a second video by preferentially usingtwo or more of the first videos having a similar capturing situation inthis way will reduce the probability that the capturing situationunnaturally changes during the playback of the second video. Therefore,the visibility of the second video can be improved.

In addition, the server control unit 23 sends the second video,generated as described above, to the terminal device 30 via the servercommunication unit 21. The second video may be sent in either downloadformat or streaming format.

(Configuration of terminal device) As shown in FIG. 6, the terminaldevice 30 includes a terminal communication unit 31, an output unit 32,an input unit 33, a terminal storage unit 34, and a terminal controlunit 35.

The terminal communication unit 31 includes a communication module forconnection to the network 40. This communication module conforms to themobile communication standard, the wired LAN standard, or a wireless LANstandard. In addition to these standards, the communication module mayconform to any communication standard. In this embodiment, the terminaldevice 30 is connected to the network 40 via the terminal communicationunit 31.

The output unit 32 includes one or more output interfaces that outputinformation to notify the user. For example, the output interfaceincluded in the output unit 32 includes, but is not limited to, adisplay that outputs information as an image or a speaker that outputsinformation as a voice.

The input unit 33 includes one or more input interfaces for detecting auser input. For example, the input interface included in the input unit33 includes, but is not limited to, a physical key, a capacitance key, atouch screen integrally provided with the display of the output unit 32,or a microphone that receives a voice input.

The terminal storage unit 34 includes one or more memories. Each memoryincluded in the terminal storage unit 34 may function, for example, as amain storage device, an auxiliary storage device, or a cache memory. Theterminal storage unit 34 stores any information used for the operationof the terminal device 30. For example, the terminal storage unit 34 maystore system programs and application programs. The information storedin the terminal storage unit 34 may be updatable, for example, with theinformation acquired from the network 40 via the terminal communicationunit 31.

The terminal control unit 35 includes one or more processors. Theterminal control unit 35 controls the overall operation of the terminaldevice 30. For example, the terminal control unit 35 accepts aspecification of a departure place and a destination either when theuser enters a request or automatically. The terminal control unit 35sends a first request, which includes a specification of a departureplace and a destination, to the server 20 via the terminal communicationunit 31. At this time, the terminal control unit 35 may further accept aspecification of one or more waypoints either when the user enters themor automatically. In such a case, the first request further includes aspecification of one or more waypoints.

In addition, the terminal control unit 35 receives the candidate routeinformation, sent from the server 20 in response to the first request,via the terminal communication unit 31. The terminal control unit 35outputs the candidate route information via the output unit 32 forpresentation to the user. The user can confirm this candidate routeinformation and, from among the plurality of candidate routes includedin this information, select a candidate route that the user wishes toconfirm by displaying its video. When the information indicating arecommended route is included in the candidate route information asdescribed above, the terminal control unit 35 may present the candidateroute, specified as the recommended route, to the user in preference toother candidate routes.

In addition, when the user selects one candidate route, the terminalcontrol unit 35 accepts the specification of one candidate route that isone of the plurality of candidate routes included in the candidate routeinformation. The terminal control unit 35 sends a second request, whichincludes the specification of the one candidate route, to the server 20via the terminal communication unit 31. As described above, thecandidate route specified by the second request is set as the specificroute in the server 20.

In addition, the terminal control unit 35 receives, via the terminalcommunication unit 31, the second video of the specific route that issent from the server 20 in response to the second request. The terminalcontrol unit 35 outputs the second video via the output unit 32 forpresentation to the user.

(Operation flow of vehicle) The operation flow of the vehicle 10 will bedescribed below with reference to FIG. 7.

Step S100: The control unit 15 generates the first video of thetraveling route by capturing the outside scene using the capturing unit13 while the vehicle 10 is traveling.

Step S101: The control unit 15 acquires the information indicating thecapturing situation at the time of capturing of the first video. Asdescribed above, the capturing situation includes at least one of thetime zone, season, weather, speed of the vehicle 10, degree of roadwaycongestion, and degree of sidewalk congestion at the time of capturing.

Step S102: The control unit 15 sends the first video to the server 20via the communication unit 11. The first video that is sent includes notonly the video data but also, as the metadata, the informationindicating the capturing situation, traveling route, andnode-passage-time playback position.

(Operation flow of server) The operation flow of the server 20 will bedescribed below with reference to FIG. 8.

Step S200: The server control unit 23 receives a plurality of firstvideos, generated by the one or more the vehicles 10, via the servercommunication unit 21 and stores the received first videos in the serverstorage unit 22.

Step S201: When a first request, which includes a specification of adeparture place and a destination, is received from the terminal device30 via the server communication unit 21, the server control unit 23determines a plurality of different candidate routes from the departureplace to the destination. When the first request further includes aspecification of one or more waypoints, the server control unit 23 maydetermine a plurality of candidate routes so as to pass through thespecified one or more waypoints.

Step S202: The server control unit 23 acquires the attribute informationindicating the attribute of each candidate route. As described above,the attribute of a candidate route includes, but is not limited to, atleast one of the type and number of facilities along the candidateroute, the presence or absence of a streetlight, and the type and numberof crimes that occurred on the route.

Step S203: The server control unit 23 sends candidate route information,which indicates the plurality of candidate routes, to the terminaldevice 30 via the server communication unit 21. As described above, thecandidate route information includes the attribute information on eachcandidate route.

Step S204: When a second request, which includes a specification of onecandidate route selected from the plurality of candidate routes, fromthe terminal device 30 via the server communication unit 21, the servercontrol unit 23 determines the specified one candidate route as thespecific route. As described above, the specific route (i.e., oneselected candidate route) is different from the traveling route of eachof the plurality of first videos stored in the server storage unit 22.

Step S205: The server control unit 23 selects, from among the pluralityof first videos stored in the server storage unit 22, two or more firstvideos to be used to generate the second video of the specific route. Inthis case, the server control unit 23 may preferentially select two ormore first videos having a similar capturing situation.

Step S206: The server control unit 23 generates the second video of thespecific route using two or more first videos. For example, the servercontrol unit 23 may generate the second video by combining at least apart of each of two or more first videos.

Step S207: The server control unit 23 sends the second video, generatedas described above, to the terminal device 30 via the servercommunication unit 21.

(Operation flow of terminal device) The operation flow of the terminaldevice 30 will be described below with reference to FIG. 9.

Step S300: The terminal control unit 35 sends a first request, whichincludes a specification of the departure place and the destination, tothe server 20 via the terminal communication unit 31.

Step S301: The terminal control unit 35 receives candidate routeinformation, which is sent from the server 20 in response to the firstrequest, via the terminal communication unit 31.

Step S302: The terminal control unit 35 outputs the candidate routeinformation via the output unit 32 for presentation to the user.

Step S303: The terminal control unit 35 sends a second request, whichincludes a specification of one of the plurality of candidate routesindicated by the candidate route information, to the server 20 via theterminal communication unit 31.

Step S304: The terminal control unit 35 receives the second video of thespecific route, which is sent from the server 20 in response to thesecond request, via the terminal communication unit 31.

Step S305: The terminal control unit 35 outputs the second video via theoutput unit 32 for presentation to the user.

As described above, in the information processing system 1 according tothis embodiment, one or more vehicles 10 each generate the first videoof the traveling route. The server 20 stores a plurality of first videosgenerated by one or more vehicles 10. Then, the server 20 generates thesecond video of a specific route, which is different from the travelingroute of each of the plurality of first videos, using two or more firstvideos and sends the generated second video to the terminal device 30.This configuration allows the second video of a specific route to beprovided to the user of the terminal device 30 even if there is novehicle 10 that actually traveled on the specific route. Therefore, theconvenience of the technique for providing desired route information isimproved.

Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to thedrawings and embodiments, it should be noted that those skilled in theart can easily make various changes and modifications based on thepresent disclosure. Therefore, it is to be noted that these changes andmodifications are within the scope of the present disclosure. Forexample, it is possible to relocate the functions included in each unitor each step in such a way that they are not logically contradictory,and it is possible to combine a plurality of units or steps into one orto divide them.

For example, in the embodiment described above, some processingoperations performed by the vehicle 10 may be performed by the server20, and some processing operations performed by the server 20 may beperformed by the vehicle 10. For example, it is also possible toconfigure the information processing system 1 in such a way that theinformation indicating the capturing situation of a first video isacquired, not by the vehicle 10, but by the server 20.

In the embodiment described above, the server control unit 23 isconfigured to preferentially select, from among a plurality of firstvideos stored in the server storage unit 22, two or more first videoshaving a similar capturing situation. Then, using the two or more firstvideos selected in this way, the server control unit 23 generates asecond video. Instead of this configuration, the capturing situation ofthe first videos to be preferentially selected may be specified by theterminal device 30. For example, the terminal control unit 35 accepts aspecification of the capturing situation either when the user specifiesthe capturing situation or automatically. The terminal control unit 35sends a third request, which includes the specification of the capturingsituation, to the server 20 via the terminal communication unit 31. Thethird request is sent to the server 20, for example, at the same timethe second request is sent; instead, the third request may be sent atanother time. When the second request and the third request are receivedvia the server communication unit 21, the server control unit 23determines one candidate route, specified in the second request, as thespecific route. At the same time, from the plurality of first videosstored in the server storage unit 22, the server control unit 23 selectstwo or more first videos to be used for generating the second video ofthe specific route. At this time, the server control unit 23preferentially selects, from among the plurality of first videos, two ormore first videos having a capturing situation similar to that specifiedby the third request. Then, the server control unit 23 generates asecond video using the selected two or more first videos. Thisconfiguration allows the user to confirm the specific route using thevideo corresponding to the desired capturing situation. This abilityfurther improves the convenience of the technique for providing desiredroute information. In addition to the configuration described above, thefirst video's capturing situation to be preferentially selected may bespecified, not by the terminal device 30, but automatically by theserver 20. The capturing situation specified by the server 20 may bepredetermined.

In the embodiment described above, the capturing situation of the firstvideo of a traveling route may include the congestion degree of aroadway and/or a sidewalk (hereinafter also referred to as thecongestion degree of a traveling route). When a plurality of firstvideos is stored for one traveling route in the server storage unit 22,the server control unit 23 may calculate the average value of thecongestion degrees of the traveling route (hereinafter also referred toas the average degree of congestion) by referring to the capturingsituation of the plurality of first videos. Then, when one of theplurality of first videos is used for generating the second video of thespecific route, the server control unit 23 may preferentially select,from among the plurality of first videos, the first video having acongestion degree closest to the average degree pf congestion. Such aconfiguration reduces the probability that the first video that wasgenerated when the congestion degree of the traveling route wasdifferent from that at the normal time (for example, the congestiondegree was temporarily high due to an event such as a motor show) willbe used for the generation of the second video. Therefore, thisconfiguration reduces the probability that the user who has browsed thesecond video may misunderstand the degree of congestion at the usualtime of the traveling route, further improving the convenience of thetechnique for providing the desired route information.

In the embodiment described above, the capturing situation of the firstvideo of a traveling route may include the speed of the vehicle 10 atthe capturing time of the first video. Note that, after selecting two ormore first videos for generating the second video of a specific route,the server control unit 23 may adjust the playback speed of at least oneof the two or more first videos by performing the video editingprocessing. For example, assume that, when two first videos areselected, the speed of the vehicle 10 at the time of capturing of thefirst first-video is 35 km/h and that the speed of the vehicle 10 at thetime of capturing of the second first-video is 70 km/h. In such a case,the server control unit 23 edits the playback speed in such a way thatthe playback speed of the first first-video becomes 2× (70 [km/h]/35[km/h]=2) or that the playback speed of the second first-video becomes0.5× (35 [km/h]/70 [km/h]=0.5). After editing the speed of the vehicle10, the server control unit 23 combines the two first videos to generatea second video. This configuration reduces the probability that thespeed of the vehicle 10 unnaturally changes during the playback of thesecond video even if the speeds of two or more of the first videos,which will be used to generate the second video, are different.Therefore, this configuration further improves the visibility of thesecond video.

It is also possible to allow a general-purpose information processingdevice, such as a computer, to function as the components of the vehicle10, as the server 20, or as the terminal device 30 in the embodimentdescribed above. More specifically, a program describing the processingfor implementing the functions of the server 20 and other devices in theembodiment is stored in the memory of the information processing deviceso that the processor of the information processing device can read thisprogram for execution. Therefore, the disclosure in this embodiment maybe implemented also as a program executable by the processor.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing system comprising: oneor more vehicles; and a server configured to communicate with the one ormore vehicles, wherein each of the one or more vehicles is configured togenerate a first video of a traveling route by capturing an outsidescene while traveling, and the server is configured to store a pluralityof the first videos generated by the one or more vehicles, generate asecond video of a specific route using two or more of the first videos,the specific route being different from the traveling route of each ofthe plurality of the first videos, and send the second video to aterminal device.
 2. The information processing system according to claim1, wherein the server is configured to generate the second video bycombining at least a part of each of the two or more of the firstvideos.
 3. The information processing system according to claim 1,wherein at least one of the vehicle or the server is configured toacquire information indicating a capturing situation at a time ofcapturing of the first video, and the server is configured topreferentially select two or more of the first videos having a similarcapturing situation from the plurality of the first videos, and generatethe second video using the selected two or more of the first videos. 4.The information processing system according to claim 3, wherein thecapturing situation includes at least one of a time zone, a season,weather, a speed of the vehicle, a congestion degree of a roadway, and acongestion degree of a sidewalk at the time of capturing.
 5. Theinformation processing system according to claim 1, wherein the serveris configured to determine a plurality of candidate routes from adeparture place to a destination, the plurality of candidate routesbeing different each other, send candidate route information to theterminal device, the candidate route information indicating theplurality of the candidate routes, and when a request including aspecification of one of the candidate routes selected from the pluralityof candidate routes is received from the terminal device, determine theone of the candidate routes as the specific route.
 6. The informationprocessing system according to claim 5, wherein the candidate routeinformation includes attribute information indicating an attribute ofeach of the candidate routes.
 7. The information processing systemaccording to claim 6, wherein the attribute of the candidate routeincludes at least one of a type and number of facilities along thecandidate route, presence or absence of a street light, and a type andnumber of crimes that occurred on the candidate route.
 8. Anon-transitory storage medium storing a program, wherein the programcauses an information processing device configured to communicate withone or more vehicles to execute storing a plurality of first videos oftraveling routes, each of the first videos being generated by capturingan outside scene while each of the one or more vehicles is traveling,generating a second video of a specific route using two or more of thefirst videos, the specific route being different from the travelingroute of each of the plurality of the first videos, and sending thesecond video to a terminal device.
 9. The storage medium according toclaim 8, wherein the program causes the information processing device toexecute generating the second video by combining at least a part of eachof the two or more of the first videos.
 10. The storage medium accordingto claim 8, wherein the program further causes the informationprocessing device to execute acquiring information indicating acapturing situation at a time of capturing of the first video,preferentially selecting two or more of the first videos having asimilar capturing situation from the plurality of the first videos, andgenerating the second video using the selected two or more of the firstvideos.
 11. The storage medium according to claim 10, wherein thecapturing situation includes at least one of a time zone, a season,weather, a speed of the vehicle, a congestion degree of a roadway, and acongestion degree of a sidewalk at the time of capturing.
 12. Thestorage medium according to claim 8, wherein the program further causesthe information processing device to execute: determining a plurality ofcandidate routes from a departure place to a destination, the pluralityof candidate routes being different each other; sending candidate routeinformation to the terminal device, the candidate route informationindicating the plurality of the candidate routes; and when a requestincluding a specification of one of the candidate routes selected fromthe plurality of candidate routes is received from the terminal device,determining the one of the candidate routes as the specific route. 13.The storage medium according to claim 12, wherein the candidate routeinformation includes attribute information indicating an attribute ofeach of the candidate routes.
 14. The storage medium according to claim13, wherein the attribute of the candidate route includes at least oneof a type and number of facilities along the candidate route, presenceor absence of a street light, and a type and number of crimes thatoccurred on the candidate route.
 15. An information processing methodperformed by an information processing system including one or morevehicles and a server configured to communicate with the one or morevehicles, the information processing method comprising: generating, byeach of the one or more vehicles, a first video of a traveling route bycapturing an outside scene while traveling; storing, by the server, aplurality of the first videos generated by the one or more vehicles;generating, by the server, a second video of a specific route using twoor more of the first videos, the specific route being different from thetraveling route of each of the plurality of the first videos, andsending, by the server, the second video to a terminal device.
 16. Theinformation processing method according to claim 15, further comprisinggenerating, by the server, the second video by combining at least a partof each of the two or more of the first videos.
 17. The informationprocessing method according to claim 15, further comprising acquiring,by at least one of the vehicle or the server, information indicating acapturing situation at a time of capturing of the first video, whereinthe server preferentially selects two or more of the first videos havinga similar capturing situation from the plurality of the first videos andgenerates the second video using the selected two or more of the firstvideos.
 18. The information processing method according to claim 17,wherein the capturing situation includes at least one of a time zone, aseason, weather, a speed of the vehicle, a congestion degree of aroadway, and a congestion degree of a sidewalk at the time of capturing.19. The information processing method according to claim 15, furthercomprising: determining, by the server, a plurality of candidate routesfrom a departure place to a destination, the plurality of candidateroutes being different each other; sending, by the server, candidateroute information to the terminal device, the candidate routeinformation indicating the plurality of the candidate routes; and when arequest including a specification of one of the candidate routesselected from the plurality of candidate routes is received from theterminal device, determining, by the server, the one of the candidateroutes as the specific route.
 20. The information processing methodaccording to claim 19, wherein the candidate route information includesattribute information indicating an attribute of each of the candidateroutes.
 21. The information processing method according to claim 20,wherein the attribute of the candidate route includes at least one of atype and number of facilities along the candidate route, presence orabsence of a street light, and a type and number of crimes that occurredon the candidate route.